Lacing-hook.



UNITED STATES Patented October 25, 1904.

PATENT UEETEE.

DAVID M. CARR, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

LAClNG-HOOK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 773,373, dated October25, 1904:. Application filed December 9, 1901. Serial No. 85,118. (Nomodel.)

To (all 1117mm, it may concern:

Be it known that 1, DAVID M. CARR, a .citi- Zen of the United States,and a resident of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lacing-Hooks,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to lacing-hooks; and it consists in the mechanismhereinafter described and claimed.

The object of the invention is to provide a lacing-hook for use on shoesand under like circumstances whereby the shoe-lace is firmly held eitherby a series of such lacing-hooksor the end of the lace may be held by asingle lacing-hook.

The device is intended particularly'for use upon shoes; but it isobviously adapted for use in other devices where laces are employed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan view of a lacing-hook embodyingthis invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a lacinghook embodyingthis invention adapted for being fastened to a shoe or other article towhich it is intended to be attached. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section onthe line 3 3 of Fig. 1, showing also the device attached to a shoe-upperor other article and showing the device in one position. Fig. 4 is across-section on the line 4 4 of Fig. 1, showing also a device attachedas in Fig. 3 with the lace in operative position; and Fig. 5 is alongitudinal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1, showing the hook inanother position.

The outer casing A is provided for the operating mechanism, which may,as shown in the drawings, be an eyelet of suitable size and proportions,so that it may be attached by the usual eyeletting method to a'sheet Xof suitable material, such as the leather of the shoe-upper, as shown inFigs. 3, A, and 5, whereby the horizontal flange a of the eyelet liesupon the top of the surface of the sheet of material to which the deviceis attached, and its vertical flange a has its lower edge a bentoutwardly so as to engage the under side of the material and firmly toattach the eyelet thereto in the usual manner.

Inside the casing A is a hook B, transversely pivoted in said casing andadapted to be tilted so that the point of the hook projects outward fromthe casing, as shown in Fig. 3, or into the other position shown in Fig.5, wherein the hook is wholly below the upper surface of the casing.Preferably the hook is pivoted by its lower arm I) by means of thetransverse pivot 6 the form of which is shown in Fig. 4, its pivotalpoints projecting laterally from the sides of the lower member b of thehook into suitable cavities in the casing. The pivotal point of the hookis, as shown, preferably placed near the middle of the lower member 5and opposite or substantially opposite the middle portion of the uppermember 6, so that when the lace Y is passed through the open mouth ofthe hook and into the back thereof the tendency of the lace is to liftthe rear end of the hook and to depress the point thereof within thecasing, as shown in Fig. 5.

A spring C is placed in the casing and acts upon the hook so as to liftit into the position shown in Fig. 3, wherein the point of the hookprojects outside of the casing.

While the hook may be pivoted in the easing A in any suitable manner, aconvenient and the preferable form of manufacturing my device is toprovide a cup shaped bottom piece D for the casing in which the hook ispivoted and which is adapted to fit tightly within said casing A, beinginserted thereinto from the lower side thereof, and thus forming aclosed surface or bottom for the casing A and being also a convenientand particularly practicable mode of manufacturing the device.

The operation of the device is as follows: The hook being tilted by thespring 0 so that the point of the upper member I) of the hook projectsfrom the casing, a lacing is easily laid under the projecting point ofthe hook and being pulled backward until it passes to the left in Figs.1 and 5 of the pivotal point lifts the back end of the hook. The lacingby this operation is bent downward, as shown in Fig. A, into a sharpcurve under the hook and is held in this position by the clamping actionof the hook upon the lacing against the upper portion of the casing A.W'hen in this position, the lacing cannot be pulled laterally from thehook, as will be seen from an examination of Fig. at, and a stop isprovided, such as the l upper edge of the bottom piece I), (see Fig. 5,)to prevent the back end of the hook being lifted outside of or above theupper surface l of the casing, thus locking the lacing firmly againstrelease until the lacing is pulled out through the open mouth of thehook. After the lace passes the pivot its contact with and pull upon theupper member tilt the hook so as to close it, and the presence of thelace, even if loose, in the rear end of the hook prevents the oppositetilting thereof. There is no strain caused by the lacing-hook upon thelace tending to loosen the lace nor to strain and loosen the knot.

This device forms an efficient clamp for a lacing,which is low down andclose to the surface of the sheet of material to which it may beattached, so as to avoid a projection or cause wear of any garment whichmay be rubbed against it and to avoid catching of the point of the hookby anything with which it may come in contact. The device is easilyapplied to a shoe or other article by the eyeletting process describedabove.

The device may be used either larger or smaller than the proportionsshown in the drawings, in accordance to the particular use to which itmay be applied.

\Vhat I claim is- 1. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casingadapted for attachment to a sheet of material, and a tilting hook insaid casing having a transverse pivot in said casing, the point of thehook being on one side of the pivot and the bend thereof being on theopposite side of the pivot, the said pivot being so placed that the lacepasses said pivot and by contact with the upper member of the hook tiltsthe point of the hook downward, substantially as described.

2. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material, a tilting hook in said casing having atransverse pivot in said casing, the point of the hook being on one sideof the pivot and the bend thereof being on the opposite side of thepivot, the said pivot being so placed that the lace passes said pivotand by contact with the upper member of the hook tilts the point of thehook downward, and a spring tending to tilt the point of the hookupward, substantially as described.

3. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material, a tilting hook in said casing having atransverse pivot in said casing, the point of the hook being on one sideof the pivot and the bend thereof being on the opposite side of thepivot, the said pivot being so placed that the lace passes said pivotand tilts by contact with the upper member of the hook the point of thehook, and a stop to limit the tilting of the hook, substantially asdescribed.

casing adapted for attachment to a sheet of material, a tilting hook insaid casing having a transverse pivot in said casing, the point of thehook being on one side of the pivot and the bend thereof being on theopposite side of the pivot, the said pivot being so placed that the lacepasses said pivot and by contact with the upper member of the hook tiltsthe point of the hook, a spring tending to tilt the point of the hookupward, and a stop to limit the tilting of the hook, substantially asdescribed.

5. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material, a tilting hook in said casing having an uppermember and a lower member, and a transverse pivot connecting the saidlower member with said casing,the point of the hook being on one side ofthe pivot and the bend thereof being on the opposite side of the pivotwhereby the lace passes the pivot and by contact with the upper memberof the hook tilts the point of the hook downward, substantially asdescribed.

6. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material, a tilting hook in said casing having an uppermember and a lower member, a transverse pivot connecting said lowermember with said casing, the point of the hook be ing on one side of thepivot and the bend thereof being on the opposite side of the pivotwhereby the lace passes the pivot and by contact with the upper memberof the hook tilts the point of the hook downward and aspring tending totilt the point of the hook upward, substantially as described.

7. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material, a tilting hook in said casing having an uppermember and a lower member, a transverse pivot connecting said lowermember with said casing, the point of the hook be ing on one side of thepivot and the bend thereof being on the opposite side of the pivotwhereby the lace passes the pivot and tilts the point of the hookdownward, and a stop to limit the tilting of the hook, substantially asdescribed.

8. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material, a tilting hook in said casing having an uppermember and a lower member, a transverse pivot connecting said lowermember with said casing, the point of the hook being on one side of thepivotand the bend. thereof being on the opposite side of'the pivotwhereby the lace passes the pivot and tilts the point of the hookdownward, a spring tending to tilt the point of the hook upward, and astop to limit the tilting of the hook, substantially as described.

9. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of t. In a lacing-hook, the combination of a material, atilting hook in said casing having an open mouth at one end and a closedcurve at the other, a pivot for said hook for connection with saidcasing opposite to the middle portion of the upper arm of said hook,said hook being adapted to lie in one position wholly'within the casingand in another position to lie with its point projecting outward fromthe same, substantially as described.

10. In a lacing-hook the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material and having a separate bottom piece therein, atilting hook in said casing transversely pivoted in said bottom pieceand having a form whereby it is adapted in one position to lie whollywithin the casing and in another position to lie with the point of thehook projecting above the same, substantially as described.

11. In a lacing-hook the combination of a casing adapted for attachmentto a sheet of material, and having a separate bottom piece therein, atilting hook in said casing transversely pivoted in said bottom pieceand having a form whereby it is adapted in one position to lie WhollyWithin the casing and in another position to lie with the point of thehook projecting above the same, and a spring tending normally to projectthe point of the hook outside the casing, substantially as described.

12. In a lacing-hook, the combination of the casing A, adapted forattachment to a sheet of suitable material, the bottom piece D in saidcasing, the hook B in said casing transversely pivoted therein andhaving the upper arm 6, and the lower arm 6', the pivot in said hookbeing situated substantially opposite the middle portion of the upperarm I), and the spring G acting upon the lower arm 6 of said hook,whereby the point of the upper arm 6 is projected outside of the uppersurface of the casing, substantially as described.

DAVID M. CARR.

Witnesses:

L. L. LEISHER, C. M. PERKINS.

